At assemblies and football games, students may see the baton twirler, Shannon Doyle.
Shannon Doyle has been baton twirling for years. It’s been a hobby of her’s since she was very little.
“I like the creativity. I like the fact that there’s always something new to learn and there are always new things to come up with. I like how difficult it is and that it’s not something people are used to,” said senior Shannon Doyle.
Shannon works hard at baton and practices almost every day. She keeps at it in order to get better, putting a lot of time aside for practicing.
“I practice every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday for three hours each. I try to work on sections of my routine and get no-drops in my sections so I can put them together,” Doyle said.
A lot of work is done with her mother, Beth Doyle, who was also a baton twirler growing up. Shannon’s grandmother coached Beth; now Beth coaches Shannon and many others in baton, including a twirling team named Attitude.
“Twirling is a unique sport. It’s something that you don’t see everywhere, and I think it’s fun to show people something they don’t see every day. Most people, when they see Shannon twirl for the first time, are amazed at what people can actually do. I think it’s fun to combine the artisticness of dance with the athletic part of baton,” said baton coach Beth Doyle.
Shannon hopes to baton twirl in college and eventually be a coach some day. She hopes to perform for the school as well before she leaves. She hopes to twirl again in the basketball season at the varsity games.
“I want Shannon to do whatever makes her happy. She has said she wants to be a twirler in a university, so I’m looking to help her achieve that goal,” said coach Doyle.
Shannon has competed on a national level and is currently learning to twirl four batons. She puts in a lot of hard work, and she will keep going forward in the future. Students can see Shannon at other school events during her last year at North.